The operators of the largest darknet marketplace facilitating the trade of stolen credit cards, UniCC, have announced their retirement after accumulating an estimated $358 million (£260 million). The anonymous proprietors expressed gratitude to the criminal community for their business, citing age and health reasons for the closure. Concurrently, several other illegal darknet marketplaces have voluntarily shut down over the winter for undisclosed reasons, eliciting mixed feelings from law enforcement. The darknet, accessible only through special browsing software, serves as a clandestine realm on the internet.
Cryptocurrency experts at Elliptic traced hundreds of millions of dollars in crypto-payments made to UniCC. The marketplace, operational since 2013, listed tens of thousands of newly stolen credit cards daily, with these details having been pilfered from online retailers, banks, and payment companies. The stolen credit cards, prized for their ability to facilitate high-value purchases or gift card acquisitions, were a lucrative commodity. UniCC’s retirement follows a trend in the darknet underworld, where marketplaces, including the former leader Joker’s Stash, White House Market, Cannazon, and Torrez, have voluntarily closed within the last six months.
While such “sunsetting” or “voluntary retirement” trends signal a more orderly shutdown compared to exit scams or police crackdowns, law enforcement remains conflicted. Professor David Décary-Hétu, a criminologist at the University of Montreal, notes that administrators of large marketplaces could earn substantial commissions, with daily profits exceeding $100,000. For the police, while appreciating the cessation, the desire to hold criminals accountable remains. Alex Hudson, the National Crime Agency’s head of darknet intelligence, underscores the need for accountability despite the closures. Despite these retirements, the darknet market landscape is likely to witness the emergence of new platforms.